So, up to last week, LO was getting pretty much 2-3 oz a feeding (BM/formula) every 2-4 hours. At his 1 month check up, the doctor told us that he should be getting half of his weight, so more like 4-5 oz. We increased it and he started to eat that much and found he slept much longer at night (last Fri-Sun). However, now all of a sudden in the last few days, he is only eating 2-3 oz again - and that takes him awhile since he gets so upset during feedings OR he is awake but just doesn't want to take the bottle anymore. As a result, he is only sleeping 1.5-2 hours during the night and day but when he wakes up to eat, it's the same problem. LO is 6 weeks tomorrow.
Any ideas??? ![]()
Re: Eating woes....
how often are you doing the 2-3 oz feedings?
When does he get upset when feeding? At the beginning?
I assume you havent' changed formula or bottles/nipples.
Is it gas?
We have several different types of bottles/nipples we use and we were doing fine with all of them until this week. I thought when they were 6 weeks, they had a growth spurt and ate more... but we are having the opposite. Last feeding he only took 2 oz and then was getting upset, so I took a break, tried again and he was screaming (while burping him in between). The only relief I found was when I cuddled him on my chest (but obv. can't eat like that)... and then swaddling and gave him the rest of the 1 oz left.
First, let me say that the six week growth spurt was BY FAR our worst. We jokingly refer to it as the Growth Spurt from Hell around here.
Honestly, though, I would suspect reflux w/the symptoms you're describing during feeding. I'm not one to readily medicate DS (he's had Tylenol literally TWICE in his life b/c we try to avoid meds if at all possible), but we put him on meds for his reflux at 2 months and we saw a WORLD of difference. It was like having a whole new baby. DS wasn't necessarily a fussy baby, but he refused to let us ever lay him flat, he would struggle w/feedings, he had constant hiccups (a sign of reflux), and he was a fountain of spitup. Unfortunately, his reflux also caused weight gain issues, so he was very slow to gain in his first 3 months.
We tried all the tricks recommended by our pedi (frequent burping, holding upright for 30 mins post-feeding, etc.) before "resorting" to meds, but the only thing that really helped was the Prevacid. We've tried several times to wean him off of it, but it is evident as soon as it begins to clear out of his system that he is still in dire need of it. Honestly, we assumed we would deal w/this in any children we had b/c DH and his entire immediate family struggles w/reflux issues, so it wasn't surprising, but now, knowing what DS is like w/his reflux meds vs. what he was like before, I'm kicking myself for not giving him the meds earlier, and it breaks my heart to know that he was in pain and we weren't helping it.
... every single day of forever.
Some babies have reflux due to food allergies/intolerances. So you might want to look into that too. I have read about many parents not needing the medications once they were able to remove the offending food(s) from their child's formula/breast milk.